Dec 12 (Reuters) - Telefonica is partnering

with Epic Games to bring the "Fortnite" video game maker's

marketplace app directly to millions of devices on the Spanish

telecoms company's network, the companies said on Thursday.

The marketplace app, called "Epic Games Store", will be

pre-installed on all new compatible Android devices operating on

the Telefonica network across regions including Spain, the UK,

Germany, Mexico and Spanish-speaking Latin America.

The companies said the move would allow players to more

easily download game titles such as "Fortnite", "Fall Guys" and

"Rocket League Sideswipe" directly from Epic, rather than

relying on conventional app marketplaces like Google's Play or

Samsung's Galaxy store.

It marks the first time Epic's Game Store will be

pre-installed on Android devices.

Users will also be able to download third-party games in the

future, the companies said.

Epic has been attempting to expand the distribution of its

video games beyond smartphone companies' official app stores. It

has accused Alphabet's Google and Samsung

of stifling app store competition.

In a statement, Google Play policy communications manager

Danielle Cohen said developers like Epic had always been able to

work directly with carriers to preinstall their apps or app

stores.

"All that has changed is that Epic understands it won't

receive a free ride on Play, so they're finally pursuing the

options that have been available to them all along," she added.

Epic earlier had a face-off with Google and iPhone maker

Apple ( AAPL ) over their rules of charging up to 30%

commissions on app store payments. After getting banned for

nearly four years, Fortnite returned to iPhones in the European

Union and worldwide on Google's Android devices in August.

Cary, North Carolina-based Epic and Telefonica said they

would expand the partnership over the next year and "bring more

benefits to mobile players across the Telefonica network",

without elaborating.